Box Score Macon, Ga. – Western Carolina erased a 2-1 match deficit to defeat Mercer 3-2 for its seventh straight win on Friday night at Hawkins Arena. WCU won by scores of 25-23, 26-28, 21-25, 25-21 and 15-12.
The Catamounts improve to 9-7 overall and 3-0 in Southern Conference play while Mercer drops to 8-9 and 1-3. The seven-match winning streak is the longest for the Catamounts since winning seven straight during the 2003 season.
Abigail Veit paced the Catamounts with a career-high 25 kills and had 11 digs for her seventh double-double of the year. MaKenzie White tallied a season-high 12 kills. Reigning SoCon Defensive Player of the Week Meagan Sanchez finished with a team-best 27 digs. Hannah Price dished out a match-high 48 assists and also had her eighth double-double of 2019 thanks to 12 digs.
Annie Karle led Mercer with 15 kills along with 12 digs and three solo blocks. Megan Smith recorded 27 digs to lead the Bears defense.
The tightly contested match featured 47 ties and 16 lead changes.
In an opening set that had 16 ties, the Catamounts erased a 23-22 deficit with three straight points to claim the frame. A White kill sparked the run followed by an Aleah Keaton block and a Noelle Soldo service ace for the final 25-23 margin.
Mercer knotted the match at 1 as a Brittany Major kill ended the second set.
The Bears used a 6-0 run in the middle of the third set to gain separation and held off a late Catamount charge as they took a 2-1 lead with a 25-21 win.
With the Catamounts holding a 19-17 lead in the fourth set, a Merry Gebel kill sparked a 4-1 run as the visitors claimed a 23-18 advantage. The Bears pulled within three points but would get no closer.
The Catamounts took a 10-8 lead in the fifth set only to see the Bears score three of the next four points to even the set at 11. Western Carolina answered with three straight points before a Karle kill brought the hosts within two, 14-12. White's 12th and final kill of the night closed out the match and gave Western Carolina its seventh straight victory.
Western Carolina wraps up its four-match road trip on Saturday, visiting Chattanooga at 6 p.m. Live stats and along with live video on the SoCon Digital Network will be available.
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